Might Makes Right: The Reality of International Politics & Why States Cause Wars
“If you kill one person, you’re prosecuted. If you kill ten people, you’re a celebrity; if you kill a quarter-of-a-million people, you’re invited to a peace conference.” – Haris Silajdžić Patient readers will bear with me as I sink into the quagmire of Balkan and, specifically, post-Yugoslav politics to make a broader point about states [...]
A Voice from Haiti, Who We Are Further Victimizing
This morning I wrote about how we and the French are continuing to rip off Haiti 7 months after their earthquake. Today I read about one woman’s experiences. She sounds so much like us. Getting to the human level during these kind of existential events, we always see that “they” are just like “us”. I [...]
How We [and the French] Keep Ripping Off Haiti
It was so nice to see so many billions pledged to help Haiti after its earthquake where the planet kicked the country after it was down from centuries of racist, imperial and neoliberal exploitation. But how much money pledged has shown up? And worse, did you know that Haiti spent more than a century paying [...]
Canada Impedes Mohawks’ Right to Return Home
This is what integrity looks like. Three Mohawks from Quebec travelled to Cochabamba for April’s climate summit. They left on the Haudenosaunee Passport since they accept neither Canadian nor American citizenship. They were easily allowed out of Canada with those credentials. But then Canada wouldn’t let them in unless they signed a Canadian document. Their story [...]
When Conservatives Question Corporate Motives
I am always pleased when conservatives question the social commitment of corporations. You don’t actually have to be a radical left winger to reasonably question whether corporations care about us, profits or the damage from oil in the Gulf. I know it is irresponsible for any sensible person to adopt the radical left wing stance [...]
The Government is Storing Your Baby’s DNA: Did You Know/Consent?
New law may create largest DNA database in Canada Recent revelations that B.C.’s health authorities are secretly storing and testing children’s DNA without parental consent, combined with provisions of Bill 11 that allow B.C.’s Minister of Health to gather information like these DNA records without notice or consent, have resulted in a call from the [...]
Unlike Premiers, Drunk Drivers Might Not Be Able to Enter Canada
In doing some research into the emerging Olympic hangover, I found this piece about tourism in Vancouver. A good warning was about tourists with criminal records not necessarily being able to enter the country. If that only applied to BC premiers, Gordon Campbell would have been stuck in Hawaii for the last 7 years and [...]
Danny Williams, Class War, and the Illusion of Choice
I was going to write something about the Newfoundland and Labrador premier skipping to Florida for minor heart surgery. He said, “This is my heart, it’s my health, it’s my choice.” I was going to write about how obvious the two-tier [class war] society is emerging in Canada. I was going to write about how [...]
National Housing Strategy Rally in Vancouver: Bill C-304
Halfway through the Olympics on Saturday, February 20, hundreds gathered at the Vancouver Art Gallery to call for a national housing strategy. NDP MP Libby Davies’ private members bill C-304 lives on despite Stephen Harper’s cynical proroguement of parliament. Despite killing all his own pending legislation, the prime minister can’t kill private members bills by [...]
CBC’s Annoying Olympics Boosterism
Yesterday, the CBC’s annoying Olympics boosterism was complemented with weak reporting on agents provocateurs and missing an opportunity to nail the IOC on rule of law hypocrisy. I have only slightly more ability to tolerate the CBC over corporate media when it comes to promoting the Afghan occupation and how amazingly, incredibly awesome the Olympics [...]
Seeing Social Movement Theory in Christmas Movies
I’m hyper-attuned to building a social movement. In fact, I’m seeing it all over the place, from tight clusters of birds whipping around in their collective unconscious to Christmas movies. Watching Polar Express tonight reminded me of my favourite part of the film near the end. Everyone’s waiting for Santa to come out and play. [...]
Economic Growth is a Cancer: Meet Steady State Economics
For decades I’ve been hearing about and studying how humans are living beyond the planet’s capability of sustaining us…and that we’ve been doing so quite unequally. And what have we done about that? Embraced neoliberal, deregulated free market capitalism: the economic expression of rape and pillage. Reduce, reuse, recycle neglects the real first R: refuse. [...]
BC NDP Convention Minus 7 Days: My Journey Towards the Executive
Since 8:35pm on Tuesday, May 12, 2009, I’ve been thinking hard about the state of the BC NDP. By that time of evening on election day, it was clear that there were profound problems in with the party. So I spent the following months talking to dozens of people about what is broken and how [...]
Nigel Lawson: Public Enemy #1
First a neoliberal champion, now Lawson actually welcomes climate breakdown! It will be a frosty night in Ottawa in October when the grumpy Lord Nigel Lawson spends an evening with the Fraser Institute celebrating neoliberalism and daring climate breakdown to challenge our adaptability. For $195 you can throw heaping stares of disdain at the fellow [...]
We’re Failing Our Grandchildren on Stopping Climate Breakdown
Our grandchildren will hate us for our informed inaction on climate change. I refuse to bear this. I’m watching a National Geographic documentary on climate breakdown right now on the Knowledge Network. Saharan dust storms are madly increasing the rates of asthma and decreasing the health of sea fans on the reefs…in the Caribbean! The [...]
keep looking »contributors
